“I’m not going to lie, at first I was very intimidated”: John Cena’s Ex-fiance Nikki Bella Felt Intimidated by Simon Cowell, Called Him the Most Iconic Judge
The America’s Got Talent franchise has just grown exponentially with the latest addition of AGT: Extreme. This spin-off of the classic talent competition show focuses solely on stunt performers. As usual, Simon Cowell takes his spot as one of the judges alongside motor sports competitor Travis Pastrana and WWE star Nikki Bella.
Bella, a wrestling hall-of-famer, has been making her way through the television world with appearances on various reality shows like Total Divas, Total Bellas, and a season on Dancing with the Stars. Her recent debut on AGT: Extreme is another addition to her growing list of television achievements.
Sharing a platform with seasoned reality competition shows pro Cowell would have been a nerve-wracking experience for her, but thankfully, the Englishman proved to be a lot less intimidating in person. In fact, Bella was blown away by how different Cowell was during their first meeting.
Getting to Know the Judges of AGT: Extreme
Late in 2021, Bella and Pastrana joined America’s Got Talent when NBC announced the line-up for their then-upcoming show. Joining Cowell and the pair was AGT veteran Terry Crews as the host. Filming began in September and went on until January 2022, with a hiatus following an accident on set.
Following the half-hour sneak peek on February 20, the first episode of Extreme finally aired the following day to a great reception from audiences. Bella was excited about this opportunity, expressing her delight that performers like her get the chance to showcase their talents and that she gets to judge them.
Nikki Bella Finds Simon Cowell Humble and Down to Earth
However, the weight of realization came to Bella in stages. After she had processed the grand opportunity that she had just landed, she realized that she would also be working alongside some of the biggest stars in their respective industries. This thought was quite daunting to her at first.
“To know that I’m sharing the judging panel with Simon Cowell and Travis Pastrana, I’m not going to lie, at first, I was very intimidated,” she explained. But she would very quickly come to realize that her fears were relatively unfounded as they all hit the ground running with their working relationship.
It was like instant chemistry with them and Terry Crews on top of it, I learned a lot,” Bella continued. “I laughed a lot. I even cried. But it was an amazing time, and it was really neat to go through. I mean, Travis is a king of extreme, and there’s no more iconic judge than Simon Cowell.”
Although Cowell is generally known as the king of savage, Bella found him to be humble, a trait that she did not expect.
As she was on her way to her first meeting with Cowell, the wrestler recalled being a bundle of nerves. “I remember I was on the car ride over, just super intimidated,” she recounted. “I’m listening to meditation music because I’m going in as a judge for the first time next to Simon. I just wanted to give my best, give my all.”
Instead of the intimidating figure she had seen on TV over the years, Bella was instead met by a very welcoming and mentoring Cowell. “From the moment that I met him, he was so down to earth and humble and gave Travis and me amazing advice, he was very inviting,” she said. Bella’s last big TV project was Dancing with the Stars in 2017, where she was eliminated sixth alongside her professional partner Artem Chigvintsev.
Source: TheThings.Com
